Word of the Day - January 11, 2019

Jyou – 畳 – Real Estate Japan’s Word of the Day

January 11, 2019

Jyou

畳, たたみ or じょう

English definition: 1. Tatami 2. Counter for tatami mats, when this kanji is preceded by a number it is read “jyou”. For example 六畳 or 6畳 (read “roku jyou”) describes a 6-tatami mat-sized Japanese-style room.

A typical Japanese-style room in an apartment. This is a 6畳 or six-tatami mat-sized room. Source: www.sukemitsu.co.jp

The size of a tatami mat varies slightly by the region of Japan, but a standard tatami mat is about 1.8 meters by 0.9 meters, or about 5.9 feet by 3.0 feet. In Tokyo, they are a little smaller, about 1.76 meters by 0.88 meters.

One tatami mat is equal to 1.53-square meters or 16.5-square feet.

Most Japanese-style rooms in apartments are six, eight, or ten-tatami mats in size.

In apartment floor plans, you will sometimes even see western-style rooms described in terms of the number of tatami mats (jyou), rather than square meters.

Jyou in Square Meters and Square Feet

The following chart shows the square meter and square feet equivalent for Japanese jyou.